Stranger Things, the sci-fi TV series, first aired in 2016 with a cast that included many young kids. As they grew up on screen, they gained fame and new opportunities, but it also came with challenges.
Millie Bobby Brown, who played Eleven (Jane), was just 11 when she joined the show. By the time filming ended for the fifth and final season in December, she was 20 and already married. In an interview with Vanity Fair, Brown shared how the show affected her social life while growing up. She spoke about both the good and bad sides of being on Stranger Things. While the show gave her amazing opportunities, it also made her social life harder.
I don’t have many friends, because of who I am, I didn’t go to school, so I don’t have the best social skills when it comes to people my own age and friendships. I struggle with that quite a bit. I missed out on a few things. But I’m working through them.
she sharedAdvertisement
Millie Bobby Brown shared why she keeps her personal life private and avoids looking back too much on her childhood with her Stranger Things co-stars.
I don’t allow many people into my life, and when I do, I think it should be super moderated, I started this really young, and I felt that the press specifically was very, very harsh on me. And so I just like to make sure that I’m advocating for myself.
she explained
Talking about her career, Brown made it clear that fame was never her goal.
I never wanted to be famous, That was never my thing. I just love acting.
She said
She also thanked her parents and Netflix for looking out for her as she grew up in the industry. However, she pointed out that not all young actors get the same protection.
I think everybody’s a little bit too lax about the way that children are brought up in the industry, It puts children in really dangerous situations.
she said, criticizing how her Netflix contract was leaked online
Finn Wolfhard, who plays Mike on Stranger Things, once asked people to stop overanalyzing their interactions. When fans started picking apart their body language in interviews, he spoke out. “If you are for real you will not harass my friends, or co-workers,” he wrote in a now-deleted 2017 social media post.
Millie Bobby Brown also shared how she grew up alongside her character, Eleven.
Eleven’s identity was a huge thing that we were kind of fighting with. Is she going to dress as a girl? Or is she gonna dress in the shirts of her adoptive father, Hopper? Or is she gonna be what her friends are helping her to be? I didn’t know what I wanted to look like, if I preferred more feminine looks, more masculine looks, more androgynous, more grunge. So I implemented that confusion.
she explained. At the time, Brown was figuring out her own style too.
While filming Stranger Things, Millie Bobby Brown often listened to songs from Wicked and even made a special request related to the musical on set. Talking about her love for musicals, she said, “I’m a big musical girl.”
Read More: Duffer Brothers Confirm No Spin-Offs: Stranger Things Characters Won’t Return After Season 5!
Brown also shared her childhood dream of becoming a Disney star. “My dream was to be Hannah Montana,” she said. She grew up loving musical films, adding, “I loved Hairspray and Mamma Mia!”
Matt Duffer, who co-created Stranger Things with his brother Ross, shared a fun behind-the-scenes moment with Millie Bobby Brown. She had a special request during filming—she wanted them to play Wicked’s song Defying Gravity while she was suspended in a harness.
She asked us to play ‘Defying Gravity’ while she was hovering midair in a harness so she could pretend to fly like Elphaba,
he recalled
Duffer also mentioned that Brown’s request wasn’t just about her love for the song. “Not just because she loves the song, but because she knows it drives us a little crazy,” he added. Despite her playful nature, he noted that when filming started, she immediately got into character.
As soon as the camera rolls — barely a second before — that silliness vanishes and she just… transforms into Eleven.
Stranger Things Season 5 is set to premiere on Netflix in 2025.
Source: Vanity Fair